


Confronting Ryuji

by phantomkit



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Character Development, Gen, Wholesome, give the boy a damn hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-08-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:20:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26014027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomkit/pseuds/phantomkit
Summary: Why did Ryuji pull that stupid stunt?  He could have died!
Relationships: Persona 5 Protagonist & Sakamoto Ryuji
Kudos: 15





	Confronting Ryuji

**Author's Note:**

> SETTING: the first available day after Shido's Palace

Ryuji sprawled on the floor, tossing his controller aside. "Fuck, man, I give up. You win. You're the Ultimate King of Power Intuition." He covered his face with the crook of his arm and groaned. "How? How did you beat me every single time with _every single character?_ What you did is physically impossible."

Akira powered down the console and picked up Ryuji's discarded controller. "I guess the constant Metaverse visits made me the God of Intuition."

Ryuji sat up and jabbed an accusing finger into Akira's shin. "Are your Personas giving you buffs? Cuz that's hella cheatin', bro."

Morgana huffed from the comfort of the bed. "How many times do I have to tell you, Ryuji? Personas can't affect reality."

"Yeah? How do you know, Mona? Maybe Personas do affect stuff in real life, like - shit, I dunno, like make you smarter or help you make friends better."

Morgana sniffed as he sat up and stretched his hind leg over his head. "Maybe your Persona makes you run faster so you place higher in track competitions. Isn't _that_ cheating, Ryuji?"

"You little - "

"Shut up, both of you." Akira mirrored Morgana's stretch, popping several vertebrae with satisfying _c_ _racks_. "Hey…Ryuji? Can I ask you something?"

"Go for it, dude." Ryuji glowered at Morgana as he dragged himself to his feet and shook out his legs one at a time. "God, my knees hurt from sittin' for so long. How do you do it, Mona? Practice makes perfect or somethin'?"

"Ryuji."

Akira's voice had an edge to it that caught Ryuji's attention and sombered him immediately. They'd been friends for eight months - they'd practically been to hell and back several times - and he had _never_ heard that tone before.

"What you did at Shido's Palace…" Akira kept his eyes on Ryuji's knees, studying the interwoven black and red like it was an intricate puzzle only he could solve. "Why did you do it, Ryuji?"

Ryuji shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets as he adopted his trademark slouch. "Fuck, man - "

"You could've been killed. You almost were! We all thought you died, Ryuji!" Akira shot up, not even noticing that he knocked the chair over in his haste.

"It had to be done, man - there wasn't another way out - " Ryuji sputtered, his eyes widening.

"We would have found one!" Behind his glasses, Akira's eyes burned with wild passion. He shook his fist in Ryuji's face before dropping it to his side. "We have always found another way out - hell, we got blown out of Futaba's Palace! There was absolutely no reason for you to risk your life like that - "

"Akira, that _was_ the other way out! Shido's Palace was falling apart around us, and that lifeboat was our last chance!"

"Why were _you_ the one that ran for it, then? I could have done it - I'm the leader, that's my job - "

"Someone else would have hesitated!" Ryuji shouted, rattling the old windows in their delapitated frames. "Someone else would have doubted themselves and slowed down! I was a fuckin' track star until Kamoshida, man! There's more to track than just runnin' around - there's hurdles and high jumps and vaulting. It had to be me, Akira!" His voice plummeted, cracking as he whispered, "Someone else would have done it wrong."

Akira and Morgana stared at him as he panted, his eyes crazy and his fists trembling at his sides. He couldn't look at them. He knew what he would see if he looked up - disgust, anger, maybe even _fucking pity._ He didn't want to punch either of them - well, maybe Mona - and he knew that if he looked up and saw pity, he was gonna see red. When he couldn't take the silence anymore, he blurted out, "Well? That answer your question, Akira? That _good_ enough for ya?"

But Akira didn't say a word. Akira just walked forward and wrapped his arms around Ryuji, squeezing him tightly. The blonde stood there awkwardly for way too long, letting his best friend - his _l_ _eader_ \- hug him like he was a long-lost childhood teddy bear. "Don't ever pull that crap again, Ryuji," he heard muffled in his shoulder. The scraggly-haired teen pulled away from the hug but clapped a hand on his shoulder, staring him right in the eyes. "The team needs you. _I_ need you." In that moment, he wasn't Akira being way too emotional at his best friend. He was Joker, leader of the Phantom Thieves, ordering his heavy hitter to stand down.

_That,_ Ryuji could deal with.

"You got it, Boss." He pushed his left hand into his pocket and shoved his right hand out, palm flat.

Akira accepted with a firm handshake. "I'm serious, Skull," he said, gripping his hand. "You try that shit again, I'm gonna kick your ass all the way through Mementos."

"Try it, scrub. You rely on your Personas to kick ass - I just need my pipe. One on one? You're done."

They separated with an awkward laugh, and Akira jerked his head toward the stairs, slipping his hands into his pockets. "You want some curry? All that winning made me hungry."

"Fuck yeah, I want some curry. Boss's curry is the bomb, yo." As they started down the stairs, his voice filtered back up. "And after that, we're gonna turn that console back on and I'm gonna kick your ass there too. I don't need Captain Kidd to win - unlike _some_ people."

_"PERSONAS CAN'T AFFECT REALITY!"_

**Author's Note:**

> Yes the line was stolen from Mordin Solus. Yes, I cried like a little bitch remembering. Fight me.
> 
> Also writing deep heartfelt emotion is harrrrrrd, can't they just hug and move on?
> 
> Feedback/concrit welcome!


End file.
